Kayaker swallowed by whale recalls feeling 'slimy texture' in its mouth
The first thing kayaker Adrián Simancas noticed after he was swallowed by a whale was the slime."I spent a second realising I was inside the mouth of something, that maybe it had eaten me, that it could have been an orca or a sea monster," the 23-year-old told BBC Mundo.Adrián had started to think how he might survive inside the humpback whale "like Pinocchio" - then the creature spat him back out.The Venezuelan kayaker had been paddling through the Strait of Magellan, off Chile's Patagonian coast, with his father when he felt something "hit me from behind, closing in on me and sinking me".His father, Dall, was able to capture the short-lived ordeal on video just metres away.
"I closed my eyes, and when I opened them again, I realised I was inside the whale's mouth," Adrián told the BBC.He felt something "slimy" touch his face, and all he could see was dark blue and white."I wondered what I could do if it had swallowed me since I could no longer fight to stop it," he said."I had to think about what to do next."But within seconds, Adrián started to feel as though he was rising toward the surface.
"I was a little afraid of whether I would be able to hold my breath because I didn't know how deep I was, and I felt like it took me a long time to come up."I went up for two seconds, and finally I got to the surface and realised that it hadn't eaten me."In a nearby kayak, Adrián's father Dall Simancas watched on in disbelief.The pair had just crossed Eagle Bay - down the coast from Punta Arenas, Chile's southernmost city - when he heard a crash behind him. "When I turned around, I didn't see Adrián.""I was worried for a second, until I saw him coming up out of the sea," the 49-year-old said."Then I saw something, a body, which I immediately interpreted as most likely being a whale because of its size."Dall had fixed a camera to the back of his kayak to record the rising waves - which captured his son's remarkable experience.Watching the footage back, Adrián - who moved with his father to Chile from Venezuela seven years ago in search of a better quality of life - was shocked to see just how enormous the whale had been."I hadn't seen the moment when the back appears, and the fin is visible. I didn't see it, I heard it. That made me nervous," he said."But later, with the video, I realised that it actually appeared before me in such a huge size that perhaps if I had seen it, it would have scared me even more."
'Physically impossible to swallow'
For Adrián, the experience was not just about survival - but he said felt he had received a "second chance" when the whale spat him out.The "unique" experience in one of the most extreme places on Earth had "invited me to reflect on what I could have done better up until that point, and on the ways I can take advantage of the experience and appreciate it as well", he added.But there is a simple reason he was able to escape the whale so quickly, according to a wildlife expert.Humpback whales have narrow throats "about the size of a household pipe" designed for swallowing small fish and shrimp, Brazilian conservationist Roched Jacobson Seba told the BBC."They physically cannot swallow large objects like kayaks, tires, or even big fish like tuna," he said."Ultimately, the whale spit out the kayak because it was physically impossible to swallow."The humpback whale likely engulfed Adrián by accident, Mr Seba suggested."The whale was likely feeding on a school of fish when it unintentionally scooped up the kayak along with its meal."When whales surface too quickly while feeding, they can accidentally hit or engulf objects in their path."He warned that the encounter served as "an important reminder" to avoid using paddleboards, surfboards or other silent vessels in areas where whales usually swim.Boats used for whale watching and research must always keep their engines on, he added, as the noise helps whales detect their presence.Additional reporting by Luis Barrucho and Maia Davies.
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The Herald Scotland
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- The Herald Scotland
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Trump's proclamation stated he had directed the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, and others to identify countries where the vetting and screening information is "so deficient as to warrant a full or partial suspension" of nationals of those countries into the U.S. and the group had found a number of countries deficient. Rubio, a South Florida native whose parents migrated from Cuba in 1956, shared on X a post from the White House, attributed to Trump: "We cannot have open migration from any country where we cannot safely and reliably vet and screen ... That is why today I am signing a new executive order placing travel restrictions on countries including Yemen, Somalia, Haiti, Libya, and numerous others." USA TODAY looked at how many visas were distributed to foreign nationals from the countries in question over the past decade. A nonimmigrant visa is a temporary document, issued for tourism, temporary work, medical care, study or business. How many visitor's visas were issued? 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Time Out
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Edgar Pronio, the heart and mind behind Checkpoint Charlie's kitchen
Checkpoint Charlie is a restaurant that crosses borders. Its kitchen brings together flavors from different parts of the world with a distinct, sharp, cosmopolitan, and contemporary identity. Located on a key corner of Palermo (inside OLA Palermo, a growing hub that combines gastronomy, art, and design), it functions as a meeting point where classic and modern, European and Latin, street and sophisticated merge in dishes full of character. Behind this concept is Edgar Pronio, a chef who understands blends: of cultures, techniques, and journeys. Born in Venezuela, trained through hard work in his country, and professionally established in Buenos Aires, Edgar's story has been slowly cooking. From catering to hotels, from sous chef to creative leader, he earned every step of his career with talent, dedication, and humility. Today, he is the chef of Checkpoint Charlie and one of the main reasons this restaurant speaks not only of food but also of stories, travels, and encounters. How did you start in the culinary world? I graduated at 23 and started working in a small catering company in Venezuela. I began as a kitchen assistant, doing basic tasks, and soon became a cook and then kitchen head. Everything happened pretty quickly. There came a moment when I had to decide whether to stay in the country or emigrate, and I chose to come to Argentina. Here I started working at Buenos Aires Verde, then at a focacceria near the Obelisco, where I got deeply involved in sourdough bakery and pastry. As often happens when you migrate, I had several jobs at once: besides those places, I did catering on my days off. Later, I worked at a food spot near Abasto, and over time, I jumped into the hotel world, working in several in the city. At the same time, I was part of the Morelia team in Caballito, starting as a pastry cook and finishing as head chef for over two years. Then, I joined Gardiner as sous chef and later as chef de cuisine. 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I'm always researching, looking for new ideas, checking what other chefs do. I keep training constantly and try to improve all the time. What can you tell us about Checkpoint Charlie's menu? The original menu was developed by Chef Takehiro Ohno. When I joined, we started testing dishes, adding ideas, removing some things, and including others. It was a very dynamic process focused on the Argentine audience: we looked for dishes that connect emotionally, that awaken memories, flavors, and sensations. Checkpoint Charlie is a place of cultural crossing; the menu is based on emblematic dishes from across Europe that coexist under a common concept. The idea is that every bite can transport you to another country. The menu is based on emblematic dishes from across Europe that coexist under a common concept Is the menu seasonal? It's not a 100% seasonal menu. Some dishes are always on it because many customers return specifically for them. 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Leader Live
20-05-2025
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US sends migrants back to Honduras and Colombia in first voluntary deportation
In the northern Honduran city of San Pedro Sula, 38 Hondurans, including 19 children, disembarked from the charter flight carrying 1,000 dollar (£748) debit cards from the US government and the offer to one day be allowed to apply for legal entry into the US. US President Donald Trump has promised to increase deportations substantially. Experts believe the self-deportation offer will only appeal to a small portion of migrants already considering return, but is unlikely to spur high demand. The offer has been paired with highly publicised migrant detentions in the US and flying a couple of hundred Venezuelan migrants to a maximum-security prison in El Salvador. In a statement about the flight on Monday, US Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem said people could register through the Customs and Border Protection Home (CBP) app. 'If you are here illegally, use the CBP Home App to take control of your departure and receive financial support to return home,' she said. 'If you don't, you will be subjected to fines, arrest, deportation and will never be allowed to return.' Kevin Antonio Posadas, from Tegucigalpa, had lived in Houston for three years, but had already been considering a return to Honduras when the Trump administration announced its offer. 'I wanted to see my family and my mom,' said Mr Posadas, who added that the process was easy. 'You just apply (through the CPB Home app) and in three days you've got it,' he said. The flight left Houston early Monday. 'It's good because you save the cost of the flight if you have the intention of leaving.' Mr Posadas said he hadn't feared deportation and liked living in the US, but had been thinking for some time about going home. He said eventually he would consider taking up the US government's offer of allowing those who self-deport to apply to enter the United States legally. Twenty-six more migrants aboard the flight were headed home to Colombia, according to a US Department of Homeland Security statement. Honduras Deputy foreign minister Antonio Garcia said the Honduran government would also support the returning migrants with 100 dollars (£74) cash and another 200 dollars (£149) credit at a government-run store that sells basic necessities. Among the migrants arriving voluntarily on Monday were four children who were born in the United States, Mr Garcia said. Mr Garcia, who met the arriving migrants at the airport, said they told him that being in the US without documents required for legal immigration or residence had been increasingly difficult, that things were growing more hostile, and they feared going to work. Still, the number of Hondurans deported from the US so far this year is below last year's pace, said Honduras immigration director Wilson Paz. While about 13,500 Hondurans have been deported from the U.S. this year, the figure stood at more than 15,000 by this time in 2024, Mr Paz said. He did not expect the number to accelerate much, despite the Trump administration's intentions. Some would continue applying to self-deport, because they feel like their time in the US is up or because it's getting harder to work, he said. 'I don't think it will be thousands of people who apply for the programme,' Mr Paz said. 'Our responsibility is that they come in an orderly fashion and we support them.'
